October 2018 visitation increases in YellowstoneBy Moosetrack Megan

MAMMOTH HOT SPRINGS, WY – Yellowstone hosted 218,076 visits in October 2018. This is approximately a 2.9 percent increase from October 2017, making it the third busiest October on record.

So far in 2018, the park has hosted 4,078,770 visits, down 0.15 percent from the same period last year. The list below shows the trend over the last several years. With the increase in October, year-to-date visitation in 2018 is roughly 29 percent higher than it was in 2013 and 3 percent lower than it was in 2016, the park’s record year for visitation.

The continued high level of visitation in the park underscores the importance of planning a Yellowstone adventureahead of time. Visitors should anticipate delays or limited parking at popular destinations, and check current conditions on the park’s website before they arrive.

More data on park visitation, including how we calculate these numbers, is available on the NPS Stats website.